Public rental locker

ABSTRACT

A coinoperated rental locker group having a plurality of compartments each door of which is provided with spring means for urging the door to move in its opening direction to a specific ajar position when the door is closed without locking, whereby a prospective user can readily detect an unoccupied compartment at one glance of the locker group by the ajar state of the door thereof.

Unlted States Patent 1191 1111 3,860,994 Itoda et a1. 1 1 Jan. 21, 1975 [5 PUBLIC RENTAL LOCKER 367,742 8/1887 Byrne 16/85 1,391,044 9/1921 B 'd 70/D1G. 41 [75] Inventors: j 1,730,646 10/1929 16/85 Kflluml Ym'lslle, all of lh 1,829,916 11/1931 Winans 16/85 Japan [73] Assignee: Glory Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha, Primary Examiner-Paul Gilliam Hyogmken, Jap Assistant Examiner-Doris L. Troutman Attorney, Agent, or FirmH0lman & Stern [22] F11ed: Sept. 15, 1972 [21] Appl. No.: 289,276 [57] ABSTRACT A coinoperated rental locker group having a plurality 52 us. (:1. 16/128, 16/180 of compartments each door of which is provided with [51] Int. Cl E0511 9/00 Spring means for urging the to move in its Open- [58] Fie1d 61 Search 16/85, 82, 86, 184, 180; ing direction to a Specific j Position when the door 70/73 81 G 41 is closed without locking, whereby a prospective user can readily detect an unoccupied compartment at one 56 Ref Ci glance of the locker group by the ajar state of the door UNITED STATES PATENTS 48,630 7/1865 Sehner 16/184 3 Claims, 5 Drawing Figures PATENTEU JAN?! 1975 SHEET 2 OF 2 PUBLIC RENTAL LOCKER BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION This invention relates generally to public rental lockers and more particularly to an improvement therein, which permits easy recognition of their availability for use or occupancy.

Lockers designed for rental purposes heretofore known in the prior art become lockable upon the insertion of a coin and are openable with a key at the time of coin introduction. The user selects and makes use of an unused locker compartment depending upon the availability or non-availability of a key, but whether or not a locker is or is not in use at the time, the door of the locker compartment is completely closed in either case. Moreover, the key is small disallowing easy recognition of the state of useage. The user accordingly has to suffer the inconvenience of not being able to ascertain the availability of an unused compartment at a first glance.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the present invention to provide an improved locker obviating the above stated disadvantage, whereby the convenience through the improvement is attained by causing the door of any locker compartment in an unused state to assume a semi-closed or ajar position thereby facilitating ready recognition of an unused locker compartment.

According to this invention, briefly summarized, there is provided in a rental locker of the type referred to above, the improved combination therewith of spring means for urging the door structure of each locker component to move in its opening direction to a specific ajar position when the door structure is closed without locking.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS The nature, details and utility of the invention will be, more clearly apparent from the following detailed description with respect to preferred embodiments of the invention when read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which like parts are designated by like reference numerals.

In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of one example of a compartmented locker according to the invention;

FIG. 2 is a cross sectional plan view of a compartment door and related parts of the locker;

FIG. 3 is a fragmentary relatively enlarged, cross sectional plan view showing another example of a door shown in relation to the locker proper provided with means for keeping the compartment door ajar;

FIG. 4 is a view similar to FIG. 2 of a compartment door in relation to the locker proper including the adaptation of a spring actuated bolt in keeping the door slightly ajar; and

FIG. 5 is a fragmentary perspective view of a composite locker in which is shown the projection of a spring actuated bolt passed through the end edge face of the compartment shelf.

DETAIL DESCRIPTION Referring to FIG. 1 in which is shown an example of the construction according to the present invention, the locker l proper is composed of the arrangement of multiple stages of superimposed compartments 2, 3, 4, and 5. Each of the openings 6 of the compartments 2, 3, 4, and 5 is provided with a panel door 7 whose one side is pivotally supported on a pin retaining support not shown to permit its opening and closing, the door being disposed in such a manner that the exterior surface of the panel door 7 becomes alined flush with the front surface of the locker 1 proper when the door is closed.

Further, the upper and lower side of each of the openings 6 corresponding to the compartments 2, 3, 4, and 5 are composed of the front edge face of a shelving 8. On one side of the inside surface of each of the panel door 7 near its pivotal hinge point is affixed a proximal end of a leaf spring 9. The other free end of this leaf spring 9 in pressure contact with the front edge face of the aforementioned shelving 8 acts to thrust the panel door 7 outward in the direction of opening when the door is being closed, which in result causes the door to assume a semi-opened position when the door is not locked.

Further, a locking mechanism 10 functionable upon the insertion of a coin is provided alongside one side of each of the compartments 2, 3, 4, and 5 disposed on the front forward side of the locker l proper. A locking member of the locking mechanism 10 is made inoperative when the panel door 7 is ajar or in a semi-opened state of the provision of a blocking element (I1) affixed to the inside face of the panel door 7.

The locker of the above described construction according to the present invention operates as follows. As shown in FIG. 1, the panel door 7 of the unlocked and unused second and fourth stages compartments 3 and 5 are thrust outward in the direction of opening by the action of the leaf spring 9, and thus the door 7 is kept ajar or put in a semi-opened state. On the other hand, the front face of the locked panel doors 7 corresponding to the compartments 2 and 4 in use are flush with the front surface of the locker l proper, whereby easy ascertainment of the non-use of compartments 3 and 5 is made possible.

The locking of an unused compartment 3 after depositing an article for. safekeeping is performed by pushing the panel door 7 in opposition to the thrust force of the leaf spring 9 to the point where the outside surface of the panel door 7 becomes flush with the forward surface of the locker I proper and bringing the blocking member 11 just inward from the projection position of the locking member of the locking mecha nism 10. At this point, a coin is introduced and the locking mechanism is locked with the key (12).

Another illustration of practice of the present invention is shown in FIG. 3 in which one side of the panel door 7 is fixed to a hinge member 13 provided with a pin support to permit rotation in relation to the locker l proper. Moreover, one side of the inside surface of the panel door 7 is adapted to allow the contact of the forward end of a spring actuated push bolt 14. This push bolt 14 is contained in a U shaped attachement frame 15 provided on a side of each of the compartments 2, 3, 4, and 5 and adapted to move backward and forward. This push bolt 14 is integrally contained in a coil spring 9,, whose one end is affixed to the attach ment frame 15 and the other end is confinedly restricted by a pin projection 16 fixed to the push bolt 14. The spring 9,, serves to thrust the push bolt 14 forward thus causing the panel door 7 when in an unlocked state to be kept ajar or in a semi-closed position. The foregoingly mentioned push bolt 14 is provided with retaining rings at both its ends to prevent the bolt from slipping out from the fixture.

In a further example of practice in accordance with the present invention as illustrated in FIG. 4 and FIG. 5, a bracket 18 is fixed to the rear side of the front edge face of the shelf 8 and the push bolt 14 slidably fixed thereon. Further, a coil spring 9,, containing the push bolt 14 internally is interposed between the bracket 18 and the rear side of the front edge face of the shelf 8. Push bolt 14 is affixed with stop rings 17, and its one extreme end is positioned to abut against a rubber strike pad 19 fixed to the rear side of the panel door 7. The broken line shown in FIG. 4 indicates the position of the panel door 7 and the displaced position of the push bolt when the panel door 7 is closed and locked.

In FIG. is shown the projecting state of the forward end of the push bolt (14) passed through the front edge face of the shelving 8 under the compartment 2, the end of the said push bolt being made to abut against a rubber strike pad 19 affixed to the rear side of the panel door 7 corresponding to the compartment 3.

By virtue of the implementation and provision according to the present invention of a spring for the door for the closure or exposure of the opening of each of the compartments of the locker proper whereinby the spring acts to thrust the door outwardly in the direction of opening when the door is pushed inward for closure, the door of an unused and unlocked compartment resultingly is kept ajar or made to take up a semi-opened position thereby making it very simple for the user to ascertain promptly the state of unuse of a locker compartment.

We claim:

1. A rental locker system for aprizing a potential user that a locker compartment is available for use, comprising in combination:

a plurality of locker compartments defined by vertically spaced shelves each having a hinged door closing the compartment when abuting the shelves and providing access thereto when ajar;

locking means provided for each of the locker compartment doors for lockably holding each door flush to the shelves in a closed state;

resiliently-urging means mounted between each door of said compartments and a shelf portion in the path of travel of the door for continuously maintaining each of the compartments doors at an ajar position in their respective said open state and signaling a prospective user of the locker system so it is promptly ascertained which respective one of the compartments is available for use by the prospective user.

2. The system as claimed in claim I in which said resiliently-urging means comprises a leaf spring fixed at a proximal end thereof at the inner surface of the corresponding door and engaging and engagable at its other distal end with a shelf edge comprising a part of the corresponding storage compartment when the door is moved from its open state towards its closed state and reaches said ajar position, the leaf spring thus exerting a spring force urging the door in its opening direction while the door is in any position between and including its closed state and said ajar position.

3. The system as claimed in claim 1 in which each door of said plurality of doors is hinged along one edge side thereof on a jamb part of the corresponding com-' partment, and said resiliently-urging means comprises a push bolt slidably supported on a shelf part of the locker body and disposed substantially perpendicularly to the path of travel of the door in its closed state, a spring circumposed about the push bolt and normally urging thesame toward the door, and a member for limiting the stroke of the resulting movement of the push bolt at a position corresponding to said ajar position of the door, said door being brought into contact with the push bolt at the ajar position as the door is swing from its opened state toward its closed state, the push bolt thereby exerting a force due to the spring on the door in its opening direction while the door is in any position between and including its closed state and said ajar position. 

1. A rental locker system for aprizing a potential user that a locker compartment is available for use, comprising in combination: a plurality of locker compartments defined by vertically spaced shelves each having a hinged door closing the compartment when abuting the shelves and providing access thereto when ajar; locking means provided for each of the locker compartment doors for lockably holding each door flush to the shelves in a closed state; resiliently-urging means mounted between each door of said compartments and a shelf portion in the path of travel of the door for continuously maintaining each of the compartments doors at an ajar position in their respective said open state and signaling a prospective user of the locker system so it is promptly ascertained which respective one of the compartments is available for use by the prospective user.
 2. The system as claimed in claim 1 in which said resiliently-urging means comprises a leaf spring fixed at a proximal end thereof at the inner surface of the corresponding door and engaging and engagable at its other distal end with a shelf edge comprising a part of the corresponding storage compartment when the door is moved from its open state towards its closed state and reaches said ajar position, the leaf spring thus exerting a spring force urging the door in its opening direction while the door is in any position between and including its closed state and said ajar position.
 3. The system as claimed in claim 1 in which each door of said plurality of doors is hinged along one edge side thereof on a jamb part of the corresponding compartment, and said resiliently-urging means comprises a push bolt slidably supported on a shelf part of the locker body and disposed substantially perpendicularly to the path of travel of the door in its closed state, a spring circumposed about the push bolt and normally urging the same toward the door, and a member for limiting the stroke of the resulting movement of the push bolt at a position corresponding to said ajar position of the door, said door being brought into contact with the push bolt at the ajar position as the door is swing from its opened state toward its closed state, the push bolt thereby exerting a force due to the spring on the door in its opening direction while the door is in any position between and including its closed state and said ajar position. 